The Golden City: San Francisco 2185

Welcome to San Francisco   Holographic billboards, glittering skyscrapers, random violence. This is The Golden City, this is San Francisco. The City, with its neon glow, seems to sleep during the day and come alive at night. As soon as the sun sets the locals come crawling out of alleys and sewers like rats.   With a population of 12 million people, this is one of the most densely populated cities on Earth. The majority of people live and sleep in capsule apartments measuring just 5ft. x 5ft. x 6ft – just large enough for a bed to sleep on, a neurolink jack with superfast connection to the net, and a small shelf for a handful of personal belongings. Anything more luxurious than that is a spiraling path to debt on the wages found in this metropolis.   Many old neighborhoods in San Francisco have been torn down and rebuilt a dozen times over the past 150 years, all in the name of progress. Other neighborhoods have been swallowed entirely by the encroaching ocean. Very few districts bear resemblance to the city of the past. A few places such as Chinatown have held onto their heritage tightly, refusing to let go, while others have happily stepped aside enthralled by promises of a better city.   Everything is for sale in San Francisco. If you have the wonlongs and the right connections then you can get your hands on anything, legal or otherwise, that you can imagine. Just don’t ask too many questions or you may find yourself served up to factory workers in tomorrow’s ramen.